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For our fifth Rundown article, we look at one of the most creative categories at the Oscars. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Visual Effects as well as general commentary about the race. Next week, we’ll start off on Monday with a category that represents one of the year’s most competitive.

Best Visual Effects

Winner Predictions

  • Ex Machina
  • Mad Max: Fury Road
  • The Martian
  • The Revenant
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens (WL O) (PP R) [New] (TB O) (TL O)

Runner-Up Predictions

  • Ex Machina (PP R) [New]
  • Mad Max: Fury Road (WL O) (TB R) [New] (TL O)

(color and symbol key at bottom of page)


Wesley Lovell: Of the eight film critics groups that give out prizes for Best Visual Effects, Mad Max: Fury Road won five of them with Ex Machina taking two and non-Oscar nominee The Walk taking the other. Yet, the Visual Effects Society gave the majority of its prizes to Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Mad Max‘s effects are truly inventive, unlike most of what we see nowadays. Star Wars, for all the hoopla about it going back to the old days of practical effects, didn’t seem all that original or impressive by comparison. Yet, the Academy is very likely to give Star Wars the award unless recent history has something to say about it. Interstellar became the first film in 6 years to win Best Visual Effects without a Best Picture nomination. This year will either prove to be the start of a new anti-Best Picture trend or will suggest Interstellar was a one-off and a new paradigm has been established.
Peter J. Patrick: My heart says Ex Machina, but my head says Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Tripp Burton: This is one of the stronger line-ups this category has had in a long time, not only with how impressive the effects are but being five films that are all in the conversation as the best films of the year. The tiny nature of Ex Machina probably excludes it from consideration, and The Martian needed a Best Picture push to get it past its flashier competition. The Revenant has that Best Picture contention, but you need a lot of effects to win this category and I donโ€™t think it has quite enough. So, we are between Mad Max: Fury Road and Star Wars: The Force Awakens for the win. Mad Max could lead the tech categories, but this may be the best chance for voters to pick Star Wars, and it won heavily at the VES last weekend, so my guess is it wins again here.
Thomas La Tourrette: Star Wars had long been the favorite, but it was starting to feel like Mad Max was getting enough momentum that it might prevail. Then at the Visual Effects Society Awards, Star Wars won a dominant four awards to Mad Maxโ€™s one, so I do not think it has the support to win. A Star Wars film has not won in this category in over 30 years, but I think that will change and it will triumph here.

KEY:

Appears on Four Lists
Appears on Three Lists
Appears on Two Lists

Wesley Lovell Peter Patrick Tripp Burton Thomas LaTourrette
[New] = New Prediction
[Return] = Prior Prediction Returning
(O) = Original Prediction
(R) = Rundown Series

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